Movable partitions are utilized in numerous situations and environments for a variety of purposes. Such partitions may include for example, foldable or collapsible doors configured to close-off an opening in order to enclose a room or to subdivide a single large room into one or more smaller rooms. The subdivision of a larger area may be desired, for example, to accommodate the simultaneous meeting of multiple groups. In such applications movable partitions are useful, among other things, for providing privacy and noise reduction.
Movable partitions may also be used to act as a security barrier, a fire barrier or as both. In such a case, the movable partition may be configured to automatically close upon the occurrence of a predetermined event such as the actuation of an associated alarm. For example, one or more movable partitions may be configured as a fire door or barrier wherein each door is formed with a plurality of panels connected to each other by way of hinge mechanisms. The hinged connection of the panels allows the door to fold-up in a compact unit on one side of the opening or it may be stored in a pocket formed within a wall, the pocket being designed to conceal the door and preserve the aesthetics of the room in which the door is installed. When deployment of the door is necessary, the door is driven by a motor along a track (the track often being incorporated into the header above the door), until the leading edge of the door, often defined by a component called the lead post, complementarily engages a mating receptacle. Such a mating receptacle may be referred to as a jamb or a door post when formed in a fixed structure (such as a wall), or as mating lead post when formed in another door or movable partition. The lead post, when properly engaged with the door jamb (or the mating lead post), allows corresponding latching mechanisms to engage if desired, and helps to provide a desired seal (e.g., a seal with respect to airflow, sound waves or both).
However, even when a movable partition is properly closed, due to the various and numerous moving components associated with a movable partition, the movable partition may not always provide the desired level of “seal” from one side of the deployed movable partition to the other. In other words, fluid flow through one or more locations may reduce the effectiveness of the door to act, for example, as a smoke barrier or a sound barrier.
Some efforts have been made to prevent the lateral displacement of the lower edge of such a movable partition to prevent fluid flow beneath the movable partition. For example, U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 11/097,101 entitled METHOD, APPARATUS, AND SYSTEM FOR DIRECTIONALLY CONTROLLING A MOVABLE PARTITION, 11/796,325 entitled METHOD, APPARATUS AND SYSTEM FOR CONTROLLING A MOVABLE PARTITION, and Provisional Application No. 60/856,957 entitled MOVABLE PARTITIONS WITH LATERAL RESTRAINT DEVICES AND RELATED METHODS (the disclosures of each of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties) discuss various means of reducing or preventing the lateral displacement of the lower edge of a movable partition.
However, even if the lower edge of a movable partition is restrained, “leaks” across the partition may still occur at various locations. In certain circumstances, such “leaks” may individually represent a relatively small flow of air or other fluid across the partition, but the cumulative effect of such leaks can be deleterious to the performance of the partition regardless of whether the partition is being used, for example, as a smoke barrier or a sound barrier.
Reduction in fluid flow across a partition, such as a movable partition used as, for example, a fire, smoke, security or sound barrier in order to make such apparatuses and systems more effective and more efficient is a continued pursuit of the industry.